Julia Michaels & Ben Rice join Kyle Meredith to discuss scoring Disney’s newest animated feature, Wish. The songwriting duo takes us behind the scenes of what it was like to not only land a Disney soundtrack but on the legendary studio’s 100th anniversary, with the backstory on what led to getting the call and the emotions that came with it. Michaels & Rice go on to tell us how they had to change their typical songwriting style in favor of writing for ensembles and imaginary characters, ...
Dec 13, 2023•22 min•Ep. 857
Omar J. Dorsey drops by to talk with Kyle Meredith about co-starring in Bookie , the new buddy comedy from Chuck Lorre and airing now on Max. Alongside Sebastian Maniscalco, with great cameos from Charlie Sheen and Toby Huss, the series follows two bookies as they grapple with the challenges posed by the imminent legalization of sports betting while navigating through a world of unpredictable clients and a lifestyle that takes them on a rollercoaster journey across every facet of Los Angeles. Do...
Dec 11, 2023•30 min•Ep. 856
Stacey Kent joins Kyle Meredith to talk about Summer Me, Winter Me, her new album that collects songs fans had requested at her live show over the years but had never recorded. The jazz vocalist discusses how the rag-tag group of songs still makes up an album that flows, why she loves the ephemeral quality of playing live, and what new bits she found in these decades-old songs. Kent also tells us why she recorded two different versions of “Ne Me Quitte Pa”, the changes that “Postcard Lover” has ...
Dec 08, 2023•28 min•Ep. 855
Rosanne Cash joins Kyle Meredith to talk about the 30th anniversary of The Wheel , the 1993 album that kicked off a second chapter of her career. The singer-songwriter tells us about getting her masters back from Sony, what it was like to make this record as her life was in a complete upheaval, and the beauty of an album that has an artist’s back up against the wall. Cash goes on to discuss the scene of musicians she found in early 90s New York, having director Mary Lambert helm the video for Th...
Dec 06, 2023•30 min•Ep. 854
Kate Siegel catches up with Kyle Meredith to talk about her role in the Mike Flanagan-created The Fall of the House of Usher , a Netflix miniseries that is loosely based on various works by Edgar Allan Poe and tells the downfall of a family, a corrupt pharmaceutical company, and a mysterious woman plaguing the characters as they disappear one by one. Alongside Siegel, the ensemble cast also features Carla Gugino, Bruce Greenwood, Mary McDonnell, Henry Thomas, Rahul Kohli, and Mark Hamill. The ac...
Dec 04, 2023•28 min•Ep. 853
Shelley Hennig joins Kyle Meredith to talk about Obliterated , out now on Netflix. The series, which also stars Nick Zano, C. Thomas Howell, and Lori Petty, showcases an elite special forces team who, after thinking they stopped a nuclear threat on Vegas, decides to party hard with booze and drugs, only to find out after everyone is good and sloshed that the bomb they neutralized was fake. Cue the action and the hilarity. The actress discusses the return of absurd moments in action/comedy, not o...
Dec 01, 2023•30 min•Ep. 852
McG joins Kyle Meredith to talk about his new Netflix film, Family Switch. The movie, which stars Jennifer Garner, Ed Helms, Emma Myers, and a lineup of great cameos, finds a chance encounter with an astrological reader (Rita Moreno) that causes the Walkers to wake up to a full body switch between all of the members of the family. The director tells us why he wanted to add to the canon of body switch movies like Vise Versa and Freaky Friday, what it was like to workshop with the actors for each ...
Nov 29, 2023•18 min•Ep. 851
X Ambassadors frontman Sam Nelson Harris joins Kyle Meredith to talk about the band’s new single, "Deep End," which serves as the credit music in the new Aquaman 2: Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. The hit-making singer-songwriter discusses writing for the Jason Momoa-starring superhero movie, as well as what draws him to write for films (the band has also been featured on the soundtracks to Transformers , The Call of the Wild , and Suicide Squad, among others), his favorite movie soundtracks, and ...
Nov 27, 2023•27 min•Ep. 850
Chicago ’s Lee Loughnane joins Kyle Meredith to talk about the legendary band’s new holiday collection, Greatest Christmas Hits . The trumpeter discusses the group’s success with their three Xmas records and what kicked it off 25 years ago on the first one, how they give so many classics their Chicago sound, and co-writing the original song “A Child’s Prayer”. Loughnane goes on to talk about covering The Beatles’ “Magical Mystery Tour” and what he thinks of the new song “Now and Then,” how they ...
Nov 24, 2023•25 min•Ep. 849
R.E.M. ’s Mike Mills catches up with Kyle Meredith to talk about the 25th-anniversary edition of Up , their first post-Bill Berry album that found the Athens band trying out a new electronic-based sound. The bassist/songwriter discusses the difficult circumstances in which the LP was created, how they found the sound, and the stories behind songs “Airportman,” “Sad Professor,” “Daysleeper,” and “Hope”. Mills goes on to talk about why they decided not to include the demos on this deluxe package, ...
Nov 22, 2023•25 min•Ep. 848
Isa Briones & Ana Yi Puig join Kyle Meredith to talk about the new Goosebumps series, out now on Disney+ and Hulu. This latest iteration finds the popular R.L. Stine books given a fresh take and a bit more of an adult storyline, following a group of five high schoolers who embark on a shadowy and twisted journey to investigate the tragic passing three decades earlier of a teen named Harold Biddle — while also unearthing dark secrets from their parents’ past. Alongside Briones and Puig, the s...
Nov 20, 2023•21 min•Ep. 847
Francis Lawrence joins Kyle Meredith to talk about The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes , the prequel that stars Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler and serves as an origin story to villain Coriolanus Snow and takes place 64 years before the Jennifer Lawrence-starring run of the story. The director, who was also behind Catching Fire and both Mockingjays, discusses how music has a much bigger focus this time around, working with Dave Cobb to bring the songs to life, and casting Rachel Z...
Nov 17, 2023•20 min•Ep. 846
Neil deGrasse Tyson and Scott Hamilton Kennedy join Kyle Meredith to discuss the new documentary, Shot In The Arm , which takes a look at the "anti-vax" movement, both before but especially during the COVID outbreak, and the disinformation that threatens our future. Kennedy, the writer and director, talks about originally working on a piece about the 2019 measles outbreak before transitioning to what was happening in 2020, while deGrasse Tyson digs into the social contract we as a society have -...
Nov 15, 2023•23 min•Ep. 845
Dolly Parton joins Kyle Meredith to talk about her new album, Rockstar, new book Behind The Seams: My Life in Rhinestones , and induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The country music legend dishes on how she chose the songs for the album based on some of her husband’s favorite classics and how she modeled her early costumes and looked after a local woman in her hometown. Parton also digs into the song "World On Fire," one of a handful of original songs on the 30-track LP, and how it ...
Nov 13, 2023•16 min•Ep. 844
Rufus Wainwright joins Kyle Meredith to talk about the 20th anniversary of Want, his double album (when parts one and two are combined) that found himself becoming more of his true self on record. The interview was recorded at the Hell or Highwater bar in Louisville, KY the day before Wainwright performed the songs with the Louisville Orchestra, so the two discuss what lends this particular album to an orchestral arrangement and why the album was always meant to be played that way, as well as a ...
Nov 10, 2023•19 min•Ep. 843
Gavin Rossdale catches up with Kyle Meredith to talk about the new best-of from Bush , Loaded: The Greatest Hits 1994-2023 . The alt-rock legend discusses the band’s popular resurgence, compares the 90s lineup of the band to the relaunched 2010s version, and the new single, “Nowhere To Go But Everywhere,” that arrives on the compilation. Rossdale also considers the band’s b-sides, his preference for the Mouth remix from the soundtrack to American Werewolf In Paris , and why they chose to cover T...
Nov 08, 2023•36 min•Ep. 842
Johnny Marr catches up with Kyle Meredith to talk about his new best-of collection, Spirit Pour , as well as his new book, Marr’s Guitars . The legendary singer/guitarist tells us how the book came to tell his life story through the instruments featured in the pages, lending some of his best guitars to Radiohead, Oasis, and New Order, and the one he bought while in Louisville that he named after Muhammad Ali. Marr goes on to discuss his signature sound, a preference to write from feeling, what h...
Nov 06, 2023•21 min•Ep. 841
Everclear singer-songwriter Art Alexakis joins Kyle Meredith to talk about the band’s new live album, Live At The Whiskey A Go Go . The frontman starts by proclaiming that he’s done with making albums and plans to concentrate more on singles and live releases before the conversation turns to his history of writing lyrics that seem to narrate a much bigger story throughout their catalog, lyrics that include plenty of easter eggs for longtime fans. Alexakis gives the backstories on “Father of Mine...
Nov 03, 2023•39 min•Ep. 840
Paul Rodgers joins Kyle Meredith to talk about Midnight Rose , the legendary singer’s first album of originals in over twenty years. The Bad Company / Free frontman discusses the simplicity in his favorite records, the blues music that influenced so many of his generation, and getting a nod of approval from Aretha Franklin. Rodgers also tells us how the song “Take Love” has roots from his time fronting Queen in the 2000s, before heading back to 1983’s Cut Loose (his first solo LP) and how it arr...
Nov 01, 2023•27 min•Ep. 839
The Kills drop by to catch up with Kyle Meredith about their latest album, God Games . Alison Mosshart and Jamie Hince take us through the challenges they put in place for themselves, including playing instruments they had never played before and staying away from the ones they’re known for, as well as the magic in naivety. Jamie then dives into recording “Godless Spirituals” in a church studio, one they preferred to stay deep in the depths of the dark basement studio rooms, along with the time ...
Oct 30, 2023•21 min•Ep. 838
David Yates & Lawrence Grey join Kyle Meredith to talk about the film, Pain Hustlers (out now on Netflix), which tells the story of Liza Drake (Emily Blunt), a blue-collar single mom who has just lost her job and is at the end of her rope when a chance meeting with pharmaceutical sales rep played by Chris Evans puts her on an upwards trajectory economically - but dubious path ethically - as she becomes entangled in a dangerous racketeering scheme. Dealing with her increasingly unhinged boss ...
Oct 28, 2023•15 min•Ep. 837
Boy Named Banjo joined Kyle Meredith backstage at the Bourbon & Beyond festival in Louisville, KY in an interview originally recorded for Fender Premium Audio and Nissan Trucks. The band dug into their major label debut album, Dusk , which arrives a decade after their first, self-released LP, The Tanglewood Sessions, and what the evolution of their sound and songwriting has looked like in hindsight. Barton Davies, William Reames, Willard Logan, Sam McCullough, and Ford Garrard discuss the al...
Oct 27, 2023•18 min•Ep. 836
The Japanese House joins Kyle Meredith to discuss the new LP, In The End It Always Does . Amber Bain digs into the revealing nature of their songs, taking inspiration from 101 Dalmations and Richard Linklater’s Boyhood , and how the record came from much of what she was reading. Bain also talks about Joni Mitchell’s influence on her melodies and guitar tunings, and why she chose to cover ABBA’s Super Trouper in a live show. Listen to The Japanese House sit and chat about all this and more in the...
Oct 25, 2023•20 min•Ep. 835
The Killers ’ Brandon Flowers joins Kyle Meredith to talk about the band’s upcoming best-of collection. The frontman tells us how their new single, "Your Side of Town," is a nod to the music of his teenage years, and goes on to dish on the vault of unreleased songs that the band has accumulated over the years, as well as how they chose which tracks would make the new compilation. Flowers also discusses what attracts him to writing about the type of characters that populated last year’s Pressure ...
Oct 23, 2023•27 min•Ep. 834
Cooking author and chef Courtney McBroom joins Kyle Meredith to talk about the new Apple TV limited series, Lessons In Chemistry, which stars Brie Larson as a chemist in the 1950s constantly having to prove herself against a male-dominated field, eventually finding an easier route and use for her skills as the host of a cooking show. McBroom tells us about consulting on a show like this, what the food of the 1950s was generally defined by, and how Larson is also a great cook in real life. She al...
Oct 20, 2023•12 min•Ep. 833
Foo Fighters ' guitarist Chris Shiflett catches up with Kyle Meredith to dig into his latest solo album, Lost At Sea . The Foo Fighters guitarist discusses his history with Americana and country rock music, how he finds the most interesting guitar playing coming from country music, and bands like Social Distortion and X being the bridge between punk and Americana. Shiflett goes on to tell us how his days in No Use For A Name had an influence on one of the new songs and how his sobriety played a ...
Oct 18, 2023•29 min•Ep. 832
Liz Phair catches up with Kyle Meredith to talk about the 30th anniversary of Exile In Guyville and touring the classic 90s touchstone with an immersive live story that spotlights the LP’s ties with The Rolling Stones’ Exile on Mainstreet . The indie legend discusses the overwhelming mythology created around her early days, fighting criticism to keep control of her artistic vision, and the piles of unreleased material from that era. Phair goes on to further dig into how she wanted to give voice ...
Oct 16, 2023•21 min•Ep. 831
Sarah Silverman joins Kyle Meredith to talk about her new comedy album, Someone You Love , which started as a special that can be seen on Max, with the vinyl version arriving Dec. 15 via Thirty Tigers. The comedian/actress/musician discusses some of her favorite comedy albums from the likes of Steve Martin, Brian Regan, and Robin Williams, to loving Broadway cast recordings when she was growing up, as well as her preference between CDs and vinyl. Silverman also talks about the songwriting side o...
Oct 13, 2023•24 min•Ep. 830
Duff McKagan joins Kyle Meredith to talk about his latest solo album, Lighthouse . The Guns N’ Roses bassist talks about how seeing small-town America while touring informed the latest set, as well as which song is an ode to The Vibrators, which song his bandmate Slash ended up on, and what it was like to get a major compliment from Bob Dylan about his lyrics. McKagan goes on to discuss teaming up with Pearl Jam’s Stone Gossard’s record label Loosegroove to release his pre-GnR material, playing ...
Oct 11, 2023•28 min•Ep. 829
Felicia Day joins Kyle Meredith to talk about her new Audible Original series, Third Eye , a comedy love letter to sci-fi and fantasy that tells the story of Laurel, a “Chosen One” wizard still grappling with the fallout of failing a decade earlier in her fight with an ultimate evil villain and also features the voices of Neil Gaiman, Wil Wheaton, Sean Astin, Lily Pichy, Danny Pudi, Alan Tudyk, London Hughes, Christopher Judge, and “Weird” Al Yankovic. The actress/writer tells how she originally...
Oct 09, 2023•33 min•Ep. 828
